


Come Hell or High Water

by SalParadiseLost



Series: The Demon in the Details [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Demons, Attempted Demon Trafficking, Attempted Kidnapping, BAMF Dick Grayson, Big Brother Dick Grayson, Demon Jason Todd, Demons, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Fluff and Angst, Gen, He will make you pay, Human Dick Grayson, Hurt Jason Todd, Hurt/Comfort, If you touch his Jason, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Incubi, Jason Todd Needs A Hug, Protective Dick Grayson, Siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:15:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29933973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SalParadiseLost/pseuds/SalParadiseLost
Summary: Dick pulls Jason out of school so they can get some brother quality time. It's a normal August afternoon and Dick is right there, so what could possibly go wrong?A lot apparently.
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Jason Todd, Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne
Series: The Demon in the Details [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2151114
Comments: 61
Kudos: 297





	1. Chapter 1

It was the dog days of summer in Gotham and the August heat sweltered down on the city. The sun was brutal this season, and it seemed to be trying to blight the city off the Earth with its rays.

Dick hated this time of the year.

The temperature was oppressive, and it constantly weighed down on his shoulders. The humidity sunk in his lungs and he got out of breath much quicker than he usually did. He desperately wanted to go back inside, but he forced himself to brave the outdoors.

He was mid-way through a kidnapping, after all. He couldn’t back out now.

“Then, Mrs. Felter said we were going read this play called ‘Midsummer’s Night’s Dream’ by this Shakespeare guy and one of the other kids began to…”

Jason’s excited voice was a constant patter in the back of Dick’s mind as they walked down the sidewalk. He was only two weeks into his first year at Gotham Academy and the kid was a constant mix of _nervousness_ and _eagerness._

Every night, when they were all gathered around the dinner table, he gave Dick and Bruce a 30 - 45 minute speech about what had happened that day. Dick knew all about who liked who, who stuck bugs in someone's lunch box and who Jason was partnered with in science. The stories were frankly hilarious, and Jason's enthusiastic rendering made them funnier.

But Jason was at that tender, oversensitive age when anything Dick did was most certainly “not cool” and any of Dick's reactions might be taken as a slight against him, so Dick had to try really hard to not laugh through it.

Jason's little reality tv show was one of the most adorable things he had ever experienced and there was something so childishly innocent about it, Dick desperately wanted it to happen as long as possible. Even as Jason was rapidly growing up and becoming more of a teenager than a child.

“Hey Dick,” Jason said, making him look down to meet his eyes. “Is Bruce going to be angry that you pulled me out of school?”

Through their bond, Dick felt the smallest sliver of _fear_ come through.

His younger brother’s face didn’t betray it, and if they didn’t have a bond Dick would have never picked up on it. But now that he did have it, it was a constant hotline to all of small fears the kid still harboured.

Dick was grateful for the bond, he really was, but sometimes it was all so much. The bond was foreign, completely new to him, and it was so obvious how human he was when he thought about it. All the emotions. The feel of them. The never-ending swirl of shifting feelings that weren’t his own.

Jason travelled them effortlessly, born to navigate their constant ebbs and flows.

Dick didn’t know how he did it, because all of them together just made him feel like he was drowning. Like his emotions were getting washed away by the rush of everyone else’s.

Sometimes it made him wish he could turn them off, to twist a knob and stifle the gush of _feeling_ that came from his brother.

But if he did that, he couldn’t be pack and there was nothing more that he wanted than to be a pack for Jason.

Dick remembered the way Jason had lightened up the first time they made a bond. Dick had cried in happiness and watched as the little demon finally acted fully alive. He hadn’t even realised how much Jason _needed_ a pack until he felt Jason’s emotions inside himself and the sheer _relief_ that washed between them.

Once the bond was made, Dick had been forced into a crash course of learning demon mannerisms. He had to figure out the difference between chirps, chirrups, chuffs, purrs, rumbles and keens and what it meant when Jason used one versus the other.

It was hard and almost maddening to try to figure out the behaviours of another species, but Dick was slowly learning.

And it was all worth it when Dick received one Jason’s small pack behaviours. The demon lit up when he walked in a room and greeted him with a chuff and nuzzle on the cheek. There was something so sweet and humbling about it that Dick almost wanted to cry each time Jason did it. It was precious, so much more so than any Dick’s issues and all of his confusion.

So he took a page from his father’s book, and forced himself to suck it up.

“Nah, he might be annoyed and give me a lecture about how ‘education is important for young boys’ but there’s no way he’s going to be angry.”

Jason didn’t look so sure, and Dick nudged their shoulders together.

“I promise, Little Wing, he isn’t going to be mad.”

“But what if he is?”

“Then, I take the blame. You’ve done nothing wrong.”

The demon still didn’t look swayed, and Dick hated the sudden dampening of the happy feelings that had been coming through the bond. The little bounce in Jason’s step stopped, and the demon looked like he was debating sprinting back to class.

And Dick would have none of that.

He swung an arm around Jason’s shoulders and tugged the incubus into a side hug.

“No frowns, Jaybird. We are skipping school and getting ice cream like the cool cats we are.” Dick grinned and Jason looked at him with pure incredulity before his face broke with a snort.

“’Cool cats’? Who says that?”

Dick gave his head a proud little tilt. “I do.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“Thank you. Flattery gets you everywhere.”

Jason’s small chuckle became a full laugh and Dick was happy to feel the bond thrum with happiness again.

He looked forward and his eyes lit up when he saw a familiar ice cream shop.

“Flattery may even get you ice cream.”

Jason’s head instantly perked, excitement buzzing across the bond. It lit Dick up for a moment, before it came crashing down.

He jerked to his brother, trying to find the problem. “What? What’s wrong?”

Jason hesitated, stopping on the sidewalk. He anxiously shifted his weight between his feet.

“There’s just… a lot of people,” he said, voice going smaller.

He was right. They weren’t the only ones thinking that ice cream would help beat the heat and the shop was crammed.

Jason was always wary of people coming too close and got nervous in crowded rooms where the emotions were a constant flurry. Combining those two things together were a definite no-go.

Dick looked around and saw a bench just a few feet behind them.

“Why don’t you wait there, Jason? I’ll go get the ice cream and come back.”

Jason followed his gaze and looked between Dick and the ice cream shop. The store was a little bit away, but the front door was immediately in view.

“Are you sure?”

Dick smiled and ruffled his little brother’s hair. “Of course, read a book for a bit. I’ll be right back.”

Jason still looked like he wanted to protest and before he could, Dick cut him off.

“Relax, Jason. I’m just going into an ice cream shop. What could go wrong?”

As it turns out, a lot can go wrong very quickly.

Dread slammed into Dick when he walked out of the shop holding two cups of ice cream, and realised that his brother wasn’t there.

The bench that Jason had been reading on not only twenty minutes ago was empty.

Jason was just… gone.

“Jason?” Dick called, looking around. Fear began to trickle down his spine. 

Where was he?

Jason should be here.

Why wasn’t he—

Jason’s _fear_ slammed into Dick like a lightning bolt, electrifying him and making his heart instantly begin to race. Dick gasped, dropped the ice cream he was holding and clutched at his chest. His heart was pounded, beating against his ribs and trying to claw its way out of Dick’s chest. It was frantic. It couldn’t keep up this pace. It was going to burst at any moment.

What was this? What was hap—

_Fear._

_Terror._

_HELP ME._

“Jason,” he said through breaths. It was Jason. These weren’t his emotions. They were his little brother’s. His little brother who was panicking and calling to Dick for help.

“Jason!” he yelled, whipping around trying desperately to find that little red hoodie Jason had been wearing. “Jason, where are you?”

Jason’s _terror_ rippled through him, his brother’s heart becoming his own. The panic was like a flood. Rising up and threatening to drown Dick under it. It was so much. It was too much. The emotions were all bleeding together like the melted ice cream splatted at his feet.

Dick forced himself to take a long breath, anything to steady himself.

But his head was swimming. The emotions were a flurry in his chest and his body was screaming at him to curl up on the ground and wait for all the feelings to pass.

He had never felt anything like this. _Humans_ weren’t meant to feel something like this. It was all too much, like he might burst.

But his little brother needed him.

He took another breath. Then, another.

He pushed the emotions back and tried to ignore the way they swelled inside him.

He needed to find Jason.

Where was Jason?

 _Pain_ ripped through the packbond. He hated this. He had never felt the bonds so wrenched and twisted, and he never, ever wanted to feel this again. He didn’t know if he could bear feeling this helpless again— too far away to do anything and too panicked to think things through clearly.

Bruce and Alfred’s alarm were ricocheting inside of him, adding even more emotions to the flurry that was going on inside Dick, but he forced himself to ignore them. He needed to focus on Jason.

Dick’s Robin training kicked in, making him block out the dread and the panic and his little brother’s distress that wanted to consume him.

Think, Dick, _think._

Alright. Access.

He surveyed the area, trying to internally catalogue what he saw.

Dick had been gone for approximately twenty minutes. Not long, but long enough for kidnappers to begin to take Jason to a secondary location, especially if they had some kind of vehicle.

He scanned the street. There was only street parking, and none of the vehicles had changed position since the last time he saw them. The chances of a vehicle went down slightly.

Next, the sidewalk.

Dick looked in both directions, trying to weigh which side kidnappers would have been more likely to take. Which way…

His eyes stopped on a phone. Most people would have walked right by it, but for Dick it was exactly what he needed. The screen was shattered like it had been thrown. Or maybe yanked away and tossed.

Dick rushed towards it, pressing its buttons and making the screen light up. His own face smushed up against Bruce and Jason’s reflected back at him.

Jason’s phone, but no Jason.

He rushed in the direction. Looking for more clues. More signs of struggle. Anything to get him closer to Jason.

People streamed past him, each one of them bent over a phone. Had any one of them looked up when Jason was taken?

This was broad daylight. Jason had been sitting on a sidewalk bench.

Had no one stopped to help him when strangers grabbed his wrists? Had no one tried to call the police?

Had no one seen a little kid, crying and terrified, and tried to save him?

He knew that some people were prejudiced against demons, but… was it really this bad?

Dick ran, time was ticking down. Every second he wasted here was a second that Jason could be taken further away. He was scanning down alleys, praying that one of them would reveal is brother, but each came up empty.

If Jason was missing any longer, he would have to call—

_Terror._

A new wave of it came over him, more intense than he had ever felt before. It filled him, ate him, took control of him. For a split second, it was the only thing he could think of. Just pure _terror_.

And underneath it, painful and piercing like a splinter, _resignation_.

No.

No, no, no.

Something was happening.

He ran, frantic and desperate to find his brother.

Another alley.

Another.

Another.

Ano—

“Hold it still. I can’t get a grip on it.”

Dick snapped his head up, looking down the long, dark alley. Among the dumpsters and the trash bags piled on the sides of buildings, were three figures. Two, large and imposing figures were baring down on a smaller one.

Jason.

The painfully small demon had been pushed to the ground, held down by one of the men while the other one was fighting to get Jason’s shirt off.

His red hoodie lay in crumpled heap against a trashcan.

“This brat’s like a fucking eel,” one of them grumbled, and the other finally managed to catch the edge of Jason’s shirt and pull it upwards.

Dick was frozen as he watched as inch by inch more of his brother’s skin was exposed. Jason’s chest stuttered, his breath came out in shallow pants, and his side of the bond filled with pure _panic._

Everything inside him said that he needed to run to his brother. He needed to pull him away and bundle him up where he’d be safe.

His little brother was in trouble, clearly terrified and calling for his help. He needed Dick.

Why couldn’t he get his feet to move?

Jason whined, frantic and wild. A high-pitched keen of an impling in distress that rang through the alley and filled Dick’s help. It wasn’t a human sound, but it didn’t matter. Dick knew what it meant and it finally unlocked whatever was frozen in Dick.

“Let him go,” he snarled, hands twisting into fists. Cold rage shot through him and seeped into every piece of his mind.

The two men stilled, but Jason’s struggling only increased.

He continued to keen from the back of his throat and seemed to be trying to say something, but the words were muffled. It took Dick a moment to realise why, but when he did, his rage became more murderous.

Because around his brother’s face, holding his jaw apart and digging a metal bit between his teeth, was a muzzle.

They had fucking muzzled him.

Dick saw red, shaking in fury as he took another step towards them. The two men flinched back but didn’t take their hands off Jason. A move Dick was going to make sure they regretted.

“Scram kid,” one of the thugs spat, “This one’s ours.”

Under him Jason whined, and the sound churned the fury already bubbling inside him. He flexed his hands, knuckles cracking.

Through the bond, Dick sent a swell of _protection, reassurance and safety_ to his little brother, hoping it would calm him down.

He was here. He’d get Jason and the demon would be safe again.

“That’s my little brother and I’m not leaving here without him,” Dick growled, prowling forward. The man holding his brother tensed, and the one that had been trying to lift his shirt stood up, brandishing a knife.

“I don’t think so,” he said, smirking through the words, “You know how much a young Incubus sex toy goes for on the black market? These things are fucking gold mines and our boss is willing to pay even more. Like hell I’m just going to let you walk away with it.”

The man’s smile widened, his teeth crooked and bent. “You should learn to keep better track of your stuff.”

Dick paused before he narrowed his eyes. Slowly, he smiled, and it was nothing like the carefree grins he gave to B and his brother. This was dark, deadly and promised pain with every tooth. Both men flinched back, alarm ringing in their eyes.

Nightwing was a feared vigilante for a reason.

“You’re going to regret saying that,” he purred, stalking forward.

The standing man looked frantically to his companion.

“Shit. Is he one too?”

The man who Dick realised now was actually a demon, shook his head. His eyes were wide and the slightest bit of trembling crawled across his skin.

“He don’t smell like one.”

“Fuck,” the man cursed, knife shaky in his hand. “What kind of demon are you? A Wraith? A Levistus?”

Dick tilted his head and licked across his teeth. “No, I’m worse. I’m a pissed off big brother.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? Another chapter with more worldbuilding that will be important later on?? More likely than you'd think.

Before the man could say another word, Dick launched himself at the guy. The man yelped, swinging the knife blindly to slash at Dick. He tracked the movement, dodging and effortlessly sweeping a leg across the ground to send the man tumbling down.

The man landed heavily with a grunt, but then instantly whipped around to slash at Dick’s ankles. Dick dodged effortlessly, gracefully dancing out of reach. He found his balance, lifted a foot and struck hard and fast, shattering the delicate bones man’s hand.

The man screamed and it sent a shiver of satisfaction through Dick. He prowled forward, placing a foot on the broken bones of the hand that dared to touch Jason. His met the man’s eyes through a narrow glare, and steadily began pressing _down._

_Down, down, down._

The bones shifted under his feet.

The man’s whimpers increased and aborted into a scream, that not a single bit of Dick felt guilty about it. He let off when he felt something in the man’s thumb pop out of place.

The man gasped sharply and clutched the mangled limb to his chest.

In another strike, Dick was snapped the man’s ankle, letting the harsh crack echo around the alley. The man began crying all over again, and Dick snorted as he bent down to pick up the guy’s abandoned knife.

“I bet you regret touching him now,” Dick hissed. “Too bad you didn’t think of that before you tried to sell an innocent kid.”

Dick kicked the guy’s broken ankle, one more time for good measure, before standing again.

“One down,” he chirped, swivelling on the ball of his foot to face the other man. “One to go.”

“Look, man, if you want a part of the profit. We can cut you in.”

The smile fell from Dick’s face, and he grimaced. “What part of ‘let him go’ don’t you understand?”

“Our boss can pay you good. I swear giving up some incubitch sex is worth what my boss is willing to pay.”

Dick didn’t know how much more anger he could fit inside him, and yet when every word that came from this demon’s mouth, it became impossibly _more_.

He wanted to make this man to _hurt._ He wanted this man to think of nothing but pain for how he almost took Jason away.

He could do it too.

Bruce had trained him well and taught him where and how to strike to cause agony.

Bruce also taught him that he needed to hold back, even when fury clouded his mind.

But Bruce hadn’t taught him how to deal with so much righteous wrath.

He pulled a fist back and struck as fast a snake.

His knuckles cracked against the guy’s temple and the thug fell to the ground like a heap.

It was a quick blow. Controlled, even though most of Dick didn’t want it to be. The fury still licked at his bones and he restrained himself from reeling back for another punch.

Not now. Not with Jason right there.

He roughly shoved the man away from his brother, and finally got a chance to reach out to Jason.

His little brother was crumpled on the ground, his shirt wrinkled and wet with his tears. The demon looked achingly small, more vulnerable than Dick ever wanted to see him. Jason should be confident—boisterous and snarky with a quick wit that got him in trouble sometimes.

He should never, ever look this helpless.

Jason whined, one of the only sounds he could make with that ugly muzzle on his face and met Dick’s gaze. His eyes were large and watery and on the verge of breaking down all over again.

Dick released the hold he had on their bond and let Jason’s emotions trickle into him again.

 _Exhausted. Relief._ So much _relief._

“Hey, Little Wing,” he said as he crouched down in front of his brother. His heart broke as the painful details of Jason’s face came into focus. The muzzle was a hideous contraption of iron and leather, weighing heavily on the demon’s head. The harsh straps clawed into the ridge of his cheekbones, making the skin there raw and puffy.

The metal bit pried into Jason’s mouth, wrenching his jaws apart and made tender corners of his lips bleed. The kid was being forced to bear his tiny impling fangs, and it made a piece of Dick ache at how young it made Jason look.

Jason whimpered, eyes flicking to the two downed men before back to Dick, and hesitantly crawling towards him. Dick moved slowly, projecting his movements so he didn’t scare Jason, and gathered the kid in a fierce hug.

The impling shook in his arms, his emotions a jumbled mix of stress and the aftermath of fear. Jason clutched on to his shirt and nuzzled against Dick’s neck, pressing his cheek into the bottom of Dick’s jaw. It was a demonic behaviour, one reserved for pack members and Jason had just recently began to bless Dick with the greeting.

It pained him to feel harsh rub of the leather and metal along with his brother’s gentle affection.

“Oh Jaybird,” he cooed into the top of Jason’s head, “let’s get this monstrosity off of you.”

Dick brought his hands up, gently tilting Jason’s head back and forth. The men had tightened the muzzle as much as physically possible on Jason’s face, and Dick could see raw indents forming in the skin. The skin on the face was already delicate, and the hard restraint was probably torture on it.

Dick contemplated cutting the muzzle off with the knife he had stolen, but he didn’t want to risk slicing Jason’s face. Plus, the muzzle was so tight, that he doubted he could wedge the blade under there in the first place.

The vigilante hummed, tilting Jason’s head down to look at how the strap was situated. There were two main binds. The bottom one looped over the back of Jason’s neck and the other travelled over his ear; they connected together so they could be tightened as one. He brushed Jason’s hair out the way and tested how easily it could be slid off. Given Jason’s sharp and immediate whimper of pain, Dick gave up that plan.

The muzzle was fastened in the back with a lock that needed a key to open it and release the pressure.

Dick frowned and his eyes slid towards the first guy he had taken down.

“Where’s the key?”

The man grimaced and shook his head. “Eat shit, demon.”

Dick scowled and stomped over to him. He put his foot down on the man’s broken hand, pressing it into the concrete. The thug hissed, but didn’t give him the key.

Dick increased the pressure, and the man stifled a scream.

“Where is the key?” he repeated, his patience rapidly growing thin.

There was a moment when Dick and the man locked eyes. The guy’s grimace flashed into a smirk and before Dick could figure out why. He dug in his pocket, pulled out a small golden key, and threw it.

Dick was frozen as the key slid across the asphalt and into a storm drain. It clattered as it went by, before completely disappearing into the black of the city underbelly.

He couldn’t think.

And then all the sudden the thoughts roared in his head, consuming him in fury all over again. The desire to make the guy hurt instantly returned, its teeth biting into Dick’s logic. He forced himself to breath, to keep steady breaths even though he wanted to launch forward.

“You’re going to regret that,” Dick threatened, crushing the man’s shattered wrist into the concrete. He felt the broken bones sliding under his foot and the muscles twitch violently in pain.

He pulled a fist back and snapped it across the man’s face. The man struggled under him and tried to fight back. Dick punched him again.

And again.

And again.

His knuckles gleamed with red.

Finally, he struck the guy’s head and the thug dropped instantly, completely knocked out. He wished he could have kept the man, alert and feeling it, but priorities. Priorities like Jason.

Dick finally stepped off the man’s wrist, eyes lingering on the joint that was rapidly going black and blue. He looked towards the storm drain, and internally sighed.

The getting the key would have been the easiest way to get the muzzle off of Jason’s face and now that piece was sunk down in the sewage below him. That meant they were going to have to pick the lock.

Dick gazed towards his brother who was standing and trying to brush off pieces of gravel from himself. Dick’s heart ached when he caught sight of blackening bruises across the demon’s body.

He walked back to Jason, stooping to pick up the boy’s abandoned red hoodie from the ground as he did. He handed it back to the kid, who gratefully tucked himself into it and let his body by swallowed by the thick fabric.

“Looks like we’re going to have to pick the lock on the muzzle,” Dick said, beginning to search for a way to bind the two men who had attempted to abduct his brother. His eyes landed on a bunch of zip ties that one of the men had in his pocket.

Zip ties that they had in order to restrain an innocent child.

Dick had to force himself not to lash out in anger again. Jason was his top priority and he needed to get the kid home.

He took the zip ties and crouched down to tie the mens’ wrists and ankles.

“I don’t have my lock picks,” he said to Jason who was silently hovering over his shoulder.

He hadn’t thought he needed his lockpicks when he was just getting ice cream with his little brother.

He wouldn’t make that mistake ever again.

“We will have to go back to the Manor. B’s there, he can pick the lock.”

The demon nodded and looked distinctly miserable because of it. Dick stood, hugging the small demon and brushing careful fingers through his hair. Jason’s bond with him was drenched in _exhaustion_ and _unhappiness_ and the mixed feelings made Dick feel sick.

But it would get better. He would get Jason home, get the muzzle off of him, and cuddle him so much that maybe he could wash away some of the anxiety that still lingered in Jason’s body.

He sent a message to the GCPD, knowing Commissioner Gordon would be able to bring the men to justice. He also knew he’d keep Bruce in the loop with the case.

The men had mentioned a boss who was apparently willing to pay extravagant amounts of money to get their hands on incubi children. Dick didn’t like to think that a new demon trafficking ring was silently getting rooted in Gotham under their noses.

Demon trafficking was nothing new. It had been a part of human society almost since its very beginning when demons were thought of as a mix between mythical creatures and monsters. Some cultures worshipped them, but most tried to hunt them to extinction or keep them in chains.

As society grew more developed and demons gained more rights, the chains grew thinner and more invisible, but they never truly were broken.

Trafficking was still prevalent across the globe with incubi and succubi being amongst the most at risk species. Gotham, with its criminal underbelly and already high demon population, could very easily turn into a major hub.

It probably would have been already if Bruce didn’t patrol every night.

Dick hated that his little brother, who should be innocent to the dark teeth of demon trafficking had to be touched by it.

He sighed, the last bits of anger flickering out of him as it was replaced by an imperative to get Jason home. He tucked the demon into his side, and gently began to guide him out of alleyway and towards the car he had drove them here with.

Jason almost immediate flicked his hood up and partially hid his face in Dick’s jacket as other people walked past.

Dick didn’t miss the looks. The lingering gazes on the muzzle and he glared at every person that dared meet his eyes. Every single one made Jason flinch and his side of their bond kept flaring in _panic_.

Eventually Dick had enough, and he stopped Jason.

“Here, Jason, get on my back. You don’t need to be stared at.”

 _Grateful_ pushed into him, and Jason practically scrambled on to his back. The kid was almost too big to be carried anymore, but, like hell, he would going to let that stop him anytime soon. He felt the kid’s trembling shake through him and the press of the cold metal of the muzzle as Jason hid his face into the nape of Dick’s neck.

To anyone else it would look like Jason had just fallen asleep on Dick’s back, and he was grateful for the tiny bit of privacy it gave them.

He continued towards the car, head swirling with his own thoughts and the press of Jason’s emotions.

The drive to the Manor was silent and when they pulled into their familiar driveway, Dick felt a huge wave of _relief_ from Jason.

It sparked something warm inside him that Jason thought of the home as a sanctuary now and was eager to return to it.

Dick helped Jason out of the car and up the short stairs towards the front door.

Up to this point, Dick had dampened his bonds with Alfred and Bruce, focussing instead on Jason.

But now, so close to them, he couldn’t ignore their frantic flurry of feelings. Guilt dropped into his stomach like a stone. He should have called B and let him know what happened. He had been so focussed on Jason that he forgot that their father also had a direct line to his brother’s emotions and had felt the kid’s terror just as acutely as Dick.

He opened the front door and was met with the echo of shouting coming from deep in the house. Bruce’s deep voice rang, and Dick listened as he absolutely demolished whoever was on the other end of the line. He sounded furious, but Dick could hear the clear stress and worry underneath it.

Jason, though, just seemed to hear the anger, and he instantly tensed next to Dick.

He grabbed his brother’s hand and squeezed it.

“You’re okay,” he promised as he sent _reassurance_ through the bond. Jason didn’t seem to completely believe him, but he didn’t resist when Dick began to follow the voice to Bruce’s study.

As they got closer, Jason’s grip on his hand steadily increased and a shiver of _unease_ pulsed through the bond. He hated when Bruce shouted, and Dick knew the boy was resisting the urge to hide in one of the Manor’s many rooms.

It reminded Dick of the early days in bringing Jason home.

The kid had edged around them like a beaten dog constantly expecting to be hit. He was silent, except for moments of intense anger that had him screaming at Bruce.

Now Dick could see the fear for what it was, but back then he had been too quick to ignore it.

He had been angry. Furious at Bruce for giving Jason Robin without asking Dick and for constantly living under the man’s thumb. He had felt betrayed and abandoned by the man he had grown to think of as a father. He didn’t see how much Bruce loved him and lashed out at anyone that came too close.

Too many times Jason had been the one who had received his most scathing jabs.

He probably would have left the Manor for good if Bruce hadn’t begged Dick to stay so he could feed Jason. The demon was wary of Dick, but he was absolutely terrified of the two older men. He got nervous when they were in the same room, let alone come close enough to feed him.

Dick didn’t exactly know why Jason had allowed him some casual touches. He hadn’t deserved them. Maybe it was because they were closer in age. Maybe it was because he had never been someone to hide his emotions. Maybe it was that Jason saw something in him that he didn’t see in himself. For whatever it was, Dick was the only one who could feed Jason without sending him into a panic attack.

And even though he was furious over Robin, he wasn’t heartless enough to let a kid starve because of it.

Somewhere between hugging the kid every night to feed him, listening to Jason enthusiastically tell him about whatever book he’d just read, and feeling the constant anxiety running through the boy because of Dick and Bruce’s fights, Jason changed from an imposition into a little brother and Dick stayed around the Manor more.

“Don’t worry, Jay,” he said when they stopped right outside the door. “He’s not angry at you. He’s worried.”

Jason’s mouth twitched around the metal bit, like he wanted to argue back but he just couldn’t. He gave up quickly and simply met Dick’s eyes with clear trepidation shining through.

Dick tried to reassure him by putting good feelings through the bond, and gently rubbed up and down Jason’s back. “It’s okay, Little Wing. I promise it’s going to be okay.”

Jason obviously couldn’t say anything and nodded. His body didn’t lose any of its tension when Dick opened the door, revealing Alfred and Bruce.

Alfred was pacing in the back of the room, speaking lowly on a cell phone. Bruce was at his desk, looking absolutely wrecked. He was partially dressed in his suit, but had lost the jacket and had the tie hanging loosely down the front of his shirt. His hair was messy, greasy strands of it falling into his forehead. Part of it was stuck up from where he was still running his hand through it.

“I don’t know where he is and that’s the problem.” His voice was low, hurried and on the edge of an outburst. “I want to know how you lost my—”

Bruce’s eyes flickered up to Dick and Jason standing in the doorway and his next word died in his throat. His eyes widened as he took in Dick’s rumpled clothes, Jason’s bruises and the muzzle that was still on his youngest’s face.

He hung up the phone immediately and was instantly rushing towards them. Jason flinched, and the tiny movement stopped Bruce in his tracks.

“What happened?” He questioned, his gaze swinging to Dick and frantically taking in condition. “Are you okay? Do you need medical attention?” His eyes went back to Jason and the muzzle and he made a pained sound in the back of his throat. It was like watching Bruce’s heart break on his face.

“Jay, baby, what happened to you?”

Jason hesitated for a second, and then all the sudden he was collapsing into Bruce’s chest, and making those heart wrenching keens from the back of his throat. Their father caught the small demon easily and murmured comforting words to the boy.

Over Jason’s head though, he found Dick’s gaze with a question obvious in his eyes.

“Jason and I were playing hooky today. I wanted to get some brother time with him and take him out for ice cream. The place was crowded and Jason wanted to sit outside while I picked up the order. And while he was alone…”

Guilt welled up instantly and Dick gulped.

“When I left him, some guys tried to kidnap him, so they could sell him on the black market. I knocked the guy’s out and reported the two guys to Gordon. He should have picked them up by now.” His eyes landed on the metal monstrosity in his brother’s mouth. “The muzzle’s on too tight for me to cut it off without hurting him and one of the bastards threw the key down a drain before I could get it. We’ll have to pick the lock.”

Bruce nodded and he gingerly felt along the edges of the muzzle on Jason’s face. The demon gasped sharply when he accidently pulled at a strap, digging the leather in tighter.

“I’m sorry, Jaylad. I’m sorry,” Bruce said, horrified that he had accidentally caused his youngest more pain. Jason murmured a light chirping sound and just let Bruce take his weight.

His bond hummed, not exactly happy, but no longer drenched in dread and fear.

“Master Dick,” Alfred’s voice startled him, and Dick whipped around to see the Butler holding a set of lockpicks out to him.

He took them grateful and knelt down so he could begin to pick the lock. Bruce shifted, angling the back of Jason’s head towards him so he could get a better view. It took Dick a couple minutes as he carefully slid the tools through the internal springs of the lock.

Eventually though, he heard a soft click, and felt the pressure on the straps release. He tenderly unwound the straps from Jason’s head and finally, _finally_ took that metal bit out of his brother’s mouth.

Jason instantly clamped his jaws shut and began to flex the muscles. It was almost funny how many faces Jason rapidly went through as he got control of his facial muscles again. He seemed to be working out the aches, eager to move after being forced into one position for so long.

Dick tossed the muzzle away, hating the way the blood stained parts of the leather and the metal bit.

“Can we burn that thing?” Jason spat, glaring at the muzzle.

Dick couldn’t help a small vicious grin. He agreed with Jason; he also wanted to see the metal monstrosity burn.

Not right way. The thug’s reference to a more powerful boss with a taste for demon trafficking still pulled at the edges of his mind.

But once Bruce had done an analysis and they had gleaned all the information they could off of it, Dick and Jay were definitely going to make that thing ashes.

Bruce frowned, looking between his boys. He didn’t seem to be on board with the promises of fire and about to say it.

Dick met his eyes, silently daring Bruce to stop him. The man gave up when he saw Dick wasn’t going to budge and shifted his focus to the sores on Jason’s face.

“How do you feel Jace?” Any pain?”

Beyond them, Dick heard Alfred shuffle around and begin to bring out one of the many first-aid kits they had stashed around the house. He knelt down in front of Jason and also began reviewing the injuries.

“It aches,” Jason said shortly, his voice was slightly raspy. “But it doesn’t hurt too bad.” The demon licked the insides of his mouth and shivered. “Can I have some water? Everything tastes like blood.”

Jason’s admittance made Dick feel sick himself.

“Of course, my boy,” Alfred said while standing to fetch Jason some water. The man disappeared in an orderly, grey blur.

Bruce hugged Jason to his chest, eyes squeezing shut as he breathed into the demon’s hair. All of Bruce’s muscles were tight with stressed and his face was distinctly haunted by how close he had come to having his son stolen.

The bond between them was strained, but it was quickly relaxing into normal.

 _Relief_ filtered through the bond and, of course, the ever-present _love_.

Dick had been Bruce’s son for most of his life at this point, and Bruce’s pure adoration of them still amazed him.

He had always known Bruce loved him; the bond just proved it many times over.

Alfred returned with two water bottles of water, a wet cloth, and an empty cup. He crouched in front of the boy and gave him one of the water bottles.

“Sip this and swish it around your mouth. Spit it out in here until you can’t taste the blood anymore.” Jason did as he was told, and once he had gotten all the blood from his mouth, began to greedily gulping down water.

After he was finished, Alfred gently washed the grime away from the cuts on his face and Dick felt the man’s packbond light up with _affection._

He placed two band-aids (both Wonder Woman-themed) over the sores on Jason’s cheeks and convinced the boy to swallow some pain pills.

By the time he was done, Jason was finally letting the exhaustion from the day’s events hit him. He yawned, stretched and his eyes began to droop even though it was early in the evening.

“I think maybe, I should take our little impling to bed. He probably needs a good meal too,” Dick said, reaching for Jason. Bruce hesitated, but didn’t fight it when Jason began crawling out of his arms. He crossed the short distance to Dick and hugged him around the neck. Dick put his arms under Jason’s thighs, and lifted him in one easy motion.

Jason was getting bigger now that he had steady meals and a roof over his head, but the demon was still painfully small for his age. Every reminder of it made Dick’s heart hurt and wish that they could have helped Jason sooner.

Bruce stood by them, running a hand through Jason’s hair. “Thank you for bringing him home. I got really panicked when his bond began telling me he was afraid, and the school didn’t know where he was.”

“I’m sorry I pulled him out of school without telling you,” Dick said, pressing his forehead to the side of Jason’s. “I should have called. I should have paid more attention I shouldn’t have even left him at that bench in the first place.”

Yeah, he had really gone for the best brother of the year on that one.

“I messed up,” Jason cut it, drawing himself up so he could look at Dick in the face. “I saw those guys acting suspicious and staring at me. I should have gone and gotten you when I noticed, but I couldn’t get over how many—"

“Jay,” Bruce’s voice was firm above him and cut the demon off. His gaze slid to Dick. “Dick. Both of you. This wasn’t your fault. The only people at fault were the ones who want to kidnap a kid.”

Dick bit his bottom lip. Bruce’s words didn’t completely assuage the guilt inside him, but it did help.

Dick felt Jason tug at their bond, a silent “okay?” coming through. Figures that Dick wouldn’t be able to hide his emotions from his little brother.

He sent back some _fine_ and gave the demon a soft smile. “Thanks for looking out for me, Little Wing.”

Jason snorted and collapse back into Dick’s grasp, resting his cheek on Dick’s collarbone. “I want food now,” he demanded, tugging the bond insistently like a puppy with a rope.

Now it was Dick’s turn to snort. To be honest, he was surprised that the incubus hadn’t begun feeding already.

“You heard the boss,” Dick said, bouncing Jason in his arms. “I got cuddle duty.”

Bruce smiled and it was so helplessly affectionate that Dick felt something inside himself melt. “I wouldn’t want to keep you from your duties.”

With one last lingering look at his father, Dick turned around and bought the demon to his room. He dumped Jason on the bed and the kid landed with an affronted squawk before Dick crawled in after him.

Jason adjusted pillows, before settling down, putting his head on Dick’s chest with a comfortable sigh.

Dick felt Jason poking at the bond, before the connection shifted to feeding. All the good emotions that were between Jay and him were suddenly amplified, like someone had taken a dial and switched it to one hundred. All the fear and anxiety from earlier today was washed away, replaced by a peaceful bliss and a warm little brother purring on his chest.

It was just… perfect. Emotions that weren’t his twisted inside him, all of them happy in slightly different shades. There was so many. So so many, rippling over him like water. A primitive human part of him almost wanted to struggle in it, but he pushed that away.

It was fine. It was okay. This was just his little brother being himself.

Jason must have picked up on it though. His purring cut off sharply, the feelings dampened, and Dick felt him pushing through a worried little _okay?_

“I’m okay. Don’t worry, Jay,” he answered verbally, and his little brother hesitated a moment before bringing the feelings back up again. The trickled in slowly, like water rising up around his feet. Dick didn’t fight, he let out a contented sigh.

Amplifying emotions was just one of the many things an incubus could do with them. They could see them, change them, emphasise them up or take them away. It was so much more than sex. Really it didn’t need to have anything to do with sex at all.

Dick brought his arms up and clutched Jason closer to him.

Jason’s packbond with him strengthened and the bliss around him grew even deeper. The demon’s purring became fiercer.

Dick closed his eyes, and let the emotions wash over him.

It didn’t feel like drowning anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another story done! Yay! 
> 
> Thank you all for tuning in and thank you especially to BlueKappa who did some betaing and told me that some of my worries about this story were all in my head. I appreciate it. 
> 
> Next story we will go back to our regularly scheduled programming of everyone being grown-ups, so don't worry if you've missed Tim and Damian.  
> Also new faces?? Maybe perhaps??
> 
> \-----  
> You can visit my tumblr at [ SalParadiseLost ](https://salparadiselost.tumblr.com) where I post tumblr things and general writing musings. My tumblr also receives some additional lore, drabbles and cut and additional scenes. Also with some fanart too!
> 
> Please leave a kudos and comment! Flattery gets you everywhere.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: If Dick was a demon in this au, he actually would be a Levistus, a demon of wrath. 
> 
> \--
> 
> Thank you for tuning back into this demon au! Next chapter probably coming tomorrow or the day after that. I'm also rapidly working on a abo wingfic series that going to be released next week, so stay tuned! 
> 
> You can visit my tumblr at [ SalParadiseLost ](https://salparadiselost.tumblr.com) where I post tumblr things and general writing musings.
> 
> Please leave a kudos and comment! Flattery gets you everywhere!


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